AOE and APOC events to combine

NOVEMBER 10, 2008 -- Consolidation has now reached the trade show space. The Optical Society of America (OSA) and SPIE have announced that the Asia Optical Fiber Communication and Optoelectronic Exposition and Conference (AOE) and Asia-Pacific Optical Communications (APOC) will combine to form a single conference and tradeshow exhibition next year. The combined event will take place November 1-6, 2009, in Shanghai, China.

Nov 10th, 2008

NOVEMBER 10, 2008 -- Consolidation has now reached the trade show space. The Optical Society of America (OSA) and SPIE have announced that the Asia Optical Fiber Communication and Optoelectronic Exposition and Conference (AOE) and Asia-Pacific Optical Communications (APOC) will combine to form a single conference and tradeshow exhibition next year. The combined event will take place November 1-6, 2009, in Shanghai, China.

"Both AOE and APOC have provided complementary programming and exhibitions for the Asian optical communications market," said Elizabeth A. Rogan, OSA executive director. "By combining these events, we are able to provide attendees and exhibitors with one comprehensive forum, addressing the breadth and scope of optical communications. From new products and business news to the latest scientific research, the merger of AOE and APOC will provide access to the most significant developments in the field."

The APOC and AOE 2009 conference will be co-sponsored by IEEE/LEOS, OSA, SPIE, the Chinese Optical Society, and the Chinese Institute of Communications. Wen Global Solutions will manage the conference and own the exposition.

"Combining these two conferences and exhibition will better serve the community, enabling both research and commercial participants to attend one event that covers every sector of photonics from optical communications to solid-state lighting and solar energy on the hardware side and from service providers and carriers to enterprise solutions and systems on the business side," said IEEE/LEOS Executive Director Rich Linke. "We are looking forward to the 2009 event and to the opportunities it will present the industry."

The organizing committees from the two conferences met this fall during the back-to-back October APOC 2008 and AOE 2008 events to discuss details of the 2009 conference, including program committees and meeting logistics.

"Since its inception in 2001, APOC has been building a reputation as the premier optical communications conference in Asia. Merging the robust APOC technical conference program with the established AOE exhibition will strengthen the links between key international researchers and important industry developers and suppliers," said Eugene Arthurs, CEO, SPIE. "Bridging that gap effectively is a vital prerequisite for making progress toward solving the world's communications challenges, bolstering the economy, and sharing scientific and engineering knowledge around the globe."

Historically, Wen Global Solutions has owned and operated the AOE conference and exhibition, with IEEE/LEOS, OSA and the Chinese Optical Society serving as technical co-sponsors. SPIE, the Chinese Optical Society, and the Chinese Institute of Communications have organized APOC.